What Would Have Happened
by brand new nothing
Summary: Ever wonder what would have happened if Sora, Riku, and Kairi went on the raft AS PLANNED, instead of gotten separated during Kingdom Hearts? Well this is an assumption! Please R&R! CHAPTER 5 UP!
1. Setting Out and Mermaid Girl

::INTRODUCTION::  
  
This is a tiny story, involving what would happen if Sora, Riku, and Kairi all went out on the raft as they had planned. It's not very good, and it links to the book "Search for Delicious" by Natalie Babbit, but I've had it all curled up in my files for a while and didn't expect to do anything with it, so consider yourself lucky to be reading this! ^ ^  
  
* * *  
  
"Last check!" Riku called as he came back from where ever he was.  
  
"Okay," Sora closed his eyes and thought. "We've got the rope, the fish, the coconuts, the mushrooms, the seagull egg, are you sure one is enough?"  
  
Kairi scowled. "I still think one is too much."  
  
"We need the protein, and yes, it's enough. The winds are strong, and will be for a couple days. That will take us to where ever we're going." Riku pointed out.  
  
Sora laughed. "Which, the wind or the seagull egg?"  
  
Kairi smiled and leaned over so her mouth was near Sora's ear. "I need to talk to you before we go. I think this is important."  
  
Sora turned to face her. "Okay, sure," he looked back towards Riku. "We'll be right back."  
  
He followed Kairi to the secret place. The walls seemed to whisper, because of the echoing water right outside of the cave. Sora and Kairi walked on through the damp hallway until they entered the enormous room, where they had scribbled on the walls with rocks when they were younger.  
  
As soon as they entered, Sora started to wander around, glancing from drawing to drawing. "I'm sure going to miss this place."  
  
"I'm going to miss our funny pictures of each oth- huh?" Kairi's eyes fell on the picture of Sora and her, when they were about six or seven, and frowned at the newly drawn poupu fruit in between. "What's that doing there?"  
  
Sora shifted away from her so she wouldn't be able to see the red patches on his cheeks. "Well..see..um.."  
  
"You drew that there?" She smiled at the thought. Had Sora wanted to share the poupu fruit with her? "When?"  
  
"Yesterday."  
  
"Why?"  
  
Silence followed.  
  
Kairi placed a hand on his shoulder and pulled him around to look at her straight on. Sora expected a sharp giggle to cut into his skin.  
  
"Why, Sora?"  
  
Seeing no way out, Sora answered. "If anything ever happened to the three of us, I wanted to make sure we would never lose each other."  
  
Kairi smiled. "Why did you lose the race? Did you do it on purpose?"  
  
Sora had never found the ground so fascinating. "Yes."  
  
"Because of Riku?"  
  
"If we shared a poupu, I wouldn't want him to know about it."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because..oh, I don't know.."  
  
"It would be more romantic?" Asked Kairi, edging closer to Sora.  
  
"Well." Sora leaned away from Kairi, she was getting too close, and way off the subject. If Sora ever did share a poupu with Kairi, if Riku knew, he would tease them, that's all, who said anything about romantic? Kairi was getting closer, and started to aim her mouth toward his, closing her eyes..  
  
Sora stepped out of the way. "Kairi..?"  
  
Her eyes popped open and she blinked. "Hmm, what?"  
  
Sora was still taking in what Kairi had attempted to do. "Wasn't there a reason you brought me here?"  
  
"Oh. Yes." She said, disappointed. She pulled something out of her pocket and handed it to Sora. "It's my necklace of Thassala shells. I want you to have it."  
  
Sora took it and looked at her. "Are you mad?"  
  
"No. Fine. Great. Terrific." She painfully smiled, and Sora knew it was a fake. She started to walk out of the secret place. Sora thought of the journey, which he didn't want to have Kairi mad at him through.  
  
"Wait, Kairi!" He called, and couldn't believe what he had made up his mind to do. She turned, and quickly, before she could question him, leaned forward, touched his lips to hers, thanked her for the necklace, and ran back out of the cave, leaving her bewildered.  
  
Sora was a bit dazed himself, but somehow it felt better knowing he did it to cheer her up, not because he liked her. The effect it might have had on Kairi might have been bigger, because she was going for the first kiss.  
  
When he caught up with Riku, he was leaning against the mast of the raft. "What took you so long? What did she want?"  
  
"She just gave me this necklace." Sora held it out so Riku could see.  
  
Riku rolled his eyes. "She could have given you that in front of me."  
  
"We were just looking at our old drawings."  
  
"And that's it?"  
  
"Yeah, that's it." Sora lied.  
  
"Oh, okay," Riku said and turned around to push a barrel onto the raft. "Your face is bright red."  
  
Did you ever notice how sand is made up of little rocks? Well that's what Sora noticed as he looked down at the ground again..  
  
* * *  
  
Sora and Riku pushed the sand into the water. Riku's side immediately was floating, drifting in the water, but Sora's even though he was pushing as hard as he could, required Riku's assistance.  
  
"You still don't got it," Riku had said. Sora pouted. Kairi laughed.  
  
In fact nothing had wavered between Kairi and Sora. Riku knew, and he took the opportunity to tease them as hard as he could. They didn't mind. They knew he was jealous of Sora.  
  
It was about midday, and Riku had discovered a small leak in the raft, and was tending to it. Sora offered to help, but Riku pointed out if more people stayed at one side of the raft than the other it would capsize. So Sora Stayed with Kairi.  
  
They had all abandoned their shoes, and Kairi was trailing her feet in the water at the back of the raft. Sora joined her.  
  
"Wearing my necklace, I see." Kairi noticed. Sora smiled and took it off to have a better look.  
  
"You really worked hard on it. I couldn't not wear it." He pointed to a shell. "I like this shell. Its color is different from the others, and it's all twisted and misshapen." He laughed. "I wonder why I like it."  
  
"Maybe because it can't help but be different. Kind of like Riku."  
  
They both looked over at Riku, who was strapping down a patch on the other side of the raft.  
  
Kairi's words echoed in his mind. Can't help but be different? Riku? Since when was he different? Sora's memory took him back to when they were very little, Riku and himself. He wasn't different then. In fact, they both were odd, and proud to be strange. Riku had valued that far better than Sora did. When Kairi came into the picture, had she brought Sora down to earth, permanently damaging his and Riku's friendship? Is that why Riku appeared strange, when he was really continuing what Sora had thrown away?  
  
If Kairi had never come, would Sora be just like Riku?  
  
Sora shook his head slightly, as if throwing the thought away.  
  
"Sora?"  
  
He jumped at Kairi's voice, and accidentally dropped the necklace into the deep, blue, water below.  
  
It happened so quickly, that Sora was confused before it started. First Kairi screamed out, "THE NECKLACE!" Sora immediately stuck his hand under the ice-cold surface of the water and groped around for it. But Riku had also sprang up with Kairi's scream and tilted the boat in surprise, causing both Sora and Kairi to fall into the water.  
  
Kairi, being right side up, grabbed onto the raft. But Sora, having his hand already in the water fell face forward. Kairi inhaled some air and held her breath, then went under water and tried to grab him, but Riku had run over to grab her, and she didn't get the chance.  
  
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!? SORA IS GOING TO DROWN!" She screeched. And all that followed was screaming and hollering, so let's just divert the scene.  
  
Sora felt water closing in around him, his body numbing, his insides twisting with pain from no air, he fought to get to the top, he knew he was going to drown, he had no chance at all of surviving.  
  
Suddenly his lungs swelled with air. He opened his eyes into pitch black, and opened his mouth to see if it was true:  
  
He could breathe underwater. Seconds passed. Then minutes. Sora just floated there, blinking with disbelief.  
  
To add to his list of 'Strange Things that Happened to Me Today,' He then heard a high pitched giggle. Out of nowhere, a little girl appeared, laughing and twirling, creating bubbles and lighting his way. She had long blond hair, and in place of her legs and feet, she had a long, green, mermaid tail. In her left hand she held a doll against her flat chest, and it appeared to be made out of stone. Around her neck was a string with what appeared to be a key with no teeth.  
  
"Um, excuse me," Sora shyly awaited her attention. The girl flapped her fins and smiled. Her voice seemed to shimmer as Sora's did, but they were underwater.  
  
"Hello," She said in her high, childish voice. "My name is Ardis, guardian of the Lost Sea."  
  
"What's the Lost Sea?"  
  
"This is, you silly human!" She laughed her shimmering, high pitched laugh that made Sora feel as if he were six again. "I like you, you're different from the others, all they want is power and money. Nasty stuff, money, whatever it is, it must be very delicious, because everybody is always fighting over it." She frowned. "Do you want money?"  
  
"What would I do with money? I don't need to buy anything, and if I did, I'd be out of luck because there are no stores on rafts-Oh my gosh, the raft! I need to go, Ardis, nice meeting you!" He started to swim towards the surface, but a young, annoying, blue-eyed, guardian-of-the-Lost-Sea stopped him.  
  
"No! Don't go! I want you to stay and play!"  
  
"I'm sorry, but I've got two friends up on the surface who think I've drowned! Please, Ardis! OW! Let GO!"  
  
Sora's arm was held onto and Ardis hugged it close. She looked up and gave him a hurt face. "What is your name?"  
  
"Sora, now please let me go, Ardis."  
  
"No. I gave you the power to breathe underwater so you could play with me. I'm awful lonely and..and.." She started to cry very softly. At first Sora though they were fake and if he said he would play, she would stop crying immediately, but she was hugging her doll and his arm at the same time, and Sora stopped trying to get away. She reminded him of Kairi when she was about six or seven, how lonely she was before Sora offered to play with her, beginning their friendship together.  
  
"Ardis?"  
  
She looked up softly. Pearly tears were formed in her eyes but when they were freed, they blended with the water around them. It was a very interesting sight. Sora bent down so his face was even with hers and he smiled. Sora felt as if he was comforting a six-year-old Kairi instead of the mermaid, and it felt odd.  
  
"Ardis?" He repeated.  
  
"Mmm?" She mumbled.  
  
"I have to go and let my friends know I'm all right. But I promise I'll be back. Just follow the raft, okay?"  
  
"Where's the raft?"  
  
"It floats on the surface, but you don't have to come out of the water, just follow it, okay?"  
  
"Is that where you'll be?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"And you promise to come and play with me?"  
  
"Maybe I'll bring a friend, too, but you'll have to put your underwater spell on them, okay?" He smiled at the thought of Kairi meeting Ardis.  
  
"Okay. Promise?"  
  
"I promise."  
  
"Bye, Sora."  
  
"I'll see you around, Ardis."  
  
Suddenly Sora felt something in his right hand. He shifted so he could see what was inside of it, and he unfurled his fingers to reveal the necklace of Thassala shells.  
  
* * *  
  
"He's dead, isn't he?" Said Kairi, looking into the water and beginning to cry.  
  
"Well, he didn't have a chance of surviving. I'm so sorry, Kairi."  
  
Riku and Kairi were sitting on the same side of the raft, side by side, mourning over Sora. They didn't know Sora was leaning on the mast right behind them, trying to figure out the best way to make an entrance. He chose the fact they were sitting on the same side of the raft.  
  
"I'm surprised at you guys, sitting on the same side? I thought Riku said the raft would capsize!"  
  
They both turned around; eyes open in horror, shock, and excitement at once. Kairi wasted no time in jumping up and hugging Sora, jumping up and down, starting about five sentences, but never finishing them. Riku was so speechless; he just sat there staring at Sora in extreme disbelief. Sora looked over Kairi's shoulder and smiled at him.  
  
Sora waited until Kairi settled down to pull the necklace out of his pocket. She looked at it, then Sora, then the necklace again, and back. It looked like she was near faint. Her open mouth turned upward into a smile, and she burst out laughing.  
  
"It's immpossi..amazi..Sora..how..when.."  
  
"Yes." Said Riku, who had spotted the necklace. "When. When did you come out of the water? An hour ago? Did you just swim to the other side of the raft and decided to make an entrance? Hid behind a barrel until you knew it was time to 'astonish' us?"  
  
"Riku..no! Why would I do that? I knew you guys were worried, well, one was, you don't seem to happy I came back."  
  
"Because I know it was just a scheme! You wanted to be super-man-who-could breathe-underwater-for-an-hour-or-so!"  
  
Sora smiled. "Now you're making sense. If I told you a water guardian helped me, would you still think it was a scheme?"  
  
"Yes, and let me guess, you can fly."  
  
"Riku-"  
  
"Sora, if this is your idea of a joke-"  
  
"Riku, you have to believe me! I'm afraid I don't have any proof, but I really can breathe underwater-"  
  
"Yeah, right, sure-"  
  
"STOP IT!"  
  
The two both looked at Kairi after she had screamed. They had never seen her this angry. "I'm tired of you two fighting! Just, just let it go, okay? Just be glad Sora didn't drown, joke or no joke! I want this to be a safe trip, which means no fighting! So shut up, both of you, and I want his to be over, forgive and forget, all right?"  
  
Sora and Riku backed away from Kairi, who was steaming mad. They looked at each other. Suddenly they all started to laugh, even Kairi. They laughed until they all hurt, and smiled until they fell asleep.  
  
* * *  
  
Sora sat up and gazed into the dark water reflecting the moonlight. He thought about Ardis and how lonely it would be with out friends, and whenever you got the chance to talk to humans, they obviously were power- hungry and fought over money. What had she said about that? Money must be delicious?  
  
Sora smiled. She had obviously had not much experience with humans.  
  
Still, he thought as he folded both arms around his hair and lay on them, all she wanted was a friend..  
  
He yawned and rolled over, drifting into a deep sleep.  
  
Something was tugging at him. He opened his eyes. "What?" He looked over.  
  
Kairi was pulling on his jacket. "I want to know the truth. What happened?"  
  
Sora groaned, having been sleeping peacefully. "I TOLD you. A water guardian"-he yawned-"helped me.." He was about to fall asleep again.  
  
Kairi poked him.  
  
"OW!" He sat up, blinking.  
  
Kairi frowned. "I don't believe you, Sora. There's no such thing as magic. Even Selphie knows THAT."  
  
Sora lay back down. "Believe what you want. But just two words," he curled up again. "Poupu fruit."  
  
Kairi blinked and watched his breathing steady back to deep breaths. She thought of what he said. Poupu fruit? OH, as in the 'Magical bond' poupu fruit. She rolled her eyes as she lay back down again. I don't believe in poupu magic, she thought.  
  
Suddenly she saw something out of the corner of her eye. She turned and looked out into the water. She raised her eyebrows. I must be losing my mind, she said as she turned back around and started to fall asleep. I thought I saw some kind of green tail.. 


	2. Sora's Mom

Hey check it out! The second chapter to the story! MWAHAHA It's not a one- shot after all!!  
  
This chapter dedicated to Annjirika, the only person to put a review on this story ::sniff::  
  
Sora woke up. Darn it. He knew himself well enough to know that once he woke up he could never get back to sleep.  
  
It was early. He finally gave in and sat up to look at the sky. The sunrise was absolutely gorgeous this morning. He sighed, standing up and holding onto the mast for support. He looked in every direction. Water, no land. He had said good bye to his island forever.  
  
His mom was probably having a fit trying to find him.  
  
Guilt fell on top of him faster than he expected, thinking of his mom. His dad left when he was little, leaving him to depend on Riku. Sora's mom told him his dad was strong and determined. Determined for what? He remembered asking. His mom smiled and told him he might figure out later.  
  
Riku was still sleeping.  
  
Sora's thoughts blended and became sentences, as if in a book. He played with them, to see how many things he could think about that morning.  
  
It was Tuesday. What happened on Tuesday? A flashback engulfed him, and he smiled.  
  
~*Flashback*~  
  
Sora was seven. It was raining outside and he was pouting. Mom would never let him outside.  
  
"Sora, honey?" She walked in the room. Her hair was long, a brownish-blond, and today, put in pigtails. For some reason, moms shouldn't wear pigtails. That's what he thought as he looked up and scowled.  
  
"Do you have to wear those, Mom? It makes me feel like I have an older sister rather than a parent."  
  
She laughed. It was a warm, hearty laugh that, for some reason, made Sora think of her scent. Vanilla. Why on earth did she always smell like vanilla? It was a good scent, though. Every time he smelled vanilla, he remembered her laugh.  
  
"Why not? It makes me feel like a little girl. Anyway, I know you want to go out but face it. You'd get pneumonia."  
  
That reminded him. "Mom, why do they spell phenomena with a P-H, rather than just an N?"  
  
She sat down and crossed her legs, right next to him. He loved it when she did that. He felt warm and safe inside, while outside it was cold and pouring. She was barefoot and she had a smudge of paint on her left hand. His mom's hobby was to paint.  
  
Her paintings were breathtaking. She could paint animals in a minute and sunsets in a second. She loved horse pictures, so she drew them frequently. Her room smelled of paints all the time.  
  
Sora was allergic to cats.  
  
His mom yearned for a cat and told him of the eight cats her family had when she was young. She named them, all of them, from memory and showed him pictures. But her favorite was Leah, the black and brown calico cat, who comforted her whenever she was sick or sad. Leah would sleep with her every night. She choose Sora's mom out of her four siblings, one of which died recently from cancer. His mom told Sora the story of how Aunt Isabel would sing him to sleep when she babysat him.  
  
Isabel was the closet to mom. Maybe it was because they both had three brothers, or maybe it was because they were the closest in age. The family went boy, boy, girl, girl, and boy. Mom was the second to last kid.  
  
Sora's mom told him she loved him more than the sky.  
  
"Well, Maybe it's because the monks got paid for creating the English language. If they spelled pneumonia with an 'N,' then they would have gotten less money."  
  
"But they spelled it with a 'P-H.'  
  
"That's right."  
  
"Mom," Sora hugged his knees closer to him. "Tell me about Dad."  
  
Sora's mom looked up at the ceiling and thought. "Hmmm..  
  
"Your father was strong..very strong. When we were young, your father would lift me up and say, 'Olive, you're getting too cute.'"  
  
"But your name is Olivia!"  
  
"Your dad called me Olive because he loved black olives." She giggled. "I loved his nickname for me."  
  
Sora scowled and stuck out his tongue. "Love is disgusting," he concluded.  
  
"Maybe you won't think so when you're older." She laughed.  
  
"I'll never fall in love," he smiled, face reddening a bit. He hated it when his mom would say stuff like, 'when you have a family,' or 'when you fall in love..'  
  
"That's what I said. Until I met your father."  
  
"What did your friends think?"  
  
"They thought I was immature. They said, 'only babies say they won't fall in love.' They all had boyfriends and wore lipstick."  
  
Sora's eyes softened a bit. "You never wear lipstick."  
  
She smiled. "That was one of the reasons your father liked me. When we kissed, he hated lipstick smudges."  
  
Kissing was number one of the top ten things that grossed Sora out. His face became even redder. "Please don't talk about kissing. It's-"  
  
"-Gross. I know, I know." She laughed again.  
  
Vanilla. Vanilla Olives. His gross list was about to get longer.  
  
Olivia loved to talk about his dad. She missed him so much.  
  
"Where is dad?" Sora timidly asked.  
  
She smiled and kissed him on the forehead, standing up. "You'll know when your older."  
  
"Can't you just tell me?" Sora whined, wiping the kiss off his forehead.  
  
"Trust me. You'll know."  
  
~*End Flashback*~  
  
Now Sora was fourteen, and he still didn't know. And now he could never go back and get the answer from his mom. 


	3. What a weird way to travel

THANK YOU FOR THE REVIEWS!!! AAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!! I AM LOVED!!! Thanks for helping me continue with the story! Did you like Sora's mom? I wanted her to be really nice and outgoing, and I think I got it down..right?  
  
"Oh look. It's wonderboy!" Riku said, breaking Sora from his thoughts.  
  
"Shut up," Sora glared at him and tried to ignore him and stared into the rising sun again.  
  
"Mmmm..wha...?" Kairi mumbled, shifting in her sleep. Her eyes flickered and she sat up, rubbing her eyes like a child. "Mornin'!" She yawned.  
  
Riku leaned against the mast, where Sora had been minutes before. "So, what's up?"  
  
"Same as you. If you haven't noticed, we're in the same boat. Literally." Sora laughed.  
  
Riku looked up at him through his silver bangs. "You know. What were you thinking?"  
  
Sora swept some hair out of his face. "Not much. Mom, Dad-"  
  
"Aww, Sora misses his mommy!" Kairi laughed, joking.  
  
"Shut up.." Sora smiled and rolled his eyes. "Throw me a coconut, I'm famished."  
  
Kairi lay back down again and groaned. "Me too. I'll split it with ya Sora."  
  
"Okay." He sat down on the edge and looked at the coconut Riku just tossed him. "Wait..ah..Riku?"  
  
Riku sighed. "You STILL don't know how to open one?"  
  
"I do too! They just...aggravate me more than anything."  
  
"Oh really?" Riku laughed and cracked it open for Sora. "You never told me that. What else 'aggravates' you?"  
  
"YOU," Sora shot angrily at him. Kairi glared at him as if to say 'keep the peace..'  
  
Sora rolled his eyes and leaned backwards. It's no pleasure traveling with this group..especially on a VERY. SMALL. RAFT.  
  
Kairi shuffled her feet uncomfortably.  
  
Riku looked up at the sky. "You know guys, it looks a little like rain soon," he spoke into the silence.  
  
Sora looked up and found he was right. The clouds were an unsettling gray and were creeping towards the sun. Sora stood up. "Maybe we should.."  
  
"Way ahead of ya," Riku started pulling on the ropes to lower the sail.  
  
Kairi kept staring at the clouds. "Rain's really depressing.."  
  
Riku raised his eyebrow. "Why?"  
  
Sora mentally willed her not to tell. Kairi exchanged glances with him and shook her head at Riku. "Nothing."  
  
* * *  
  
"Do you think that world is really out there?"  
  
"Are we back on WORLDS???" Kairi rolled her eyes and fell over, arms sprawled out across the deck. "Do you guys EVER talk about anything else??"  
  
Both Riku and Sora looked at each other.  
  
"Well..no..?"  
  
"You are IMPOSSIBLE. Don't you ever get bored? Why can't we talk about something else for once? Ever since I moved here.."  
  
"GOOD GOD, KAIRI! YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT WENT ON BEFORE YOU MOVED IN!!" Riku yelled into the continually darkening sky. Both stared at him.  
  
Kairi looked down at the ground. "Oh. Sorry. I know, I know," She smiled. "You two were best friends until I moved in. Then Sora-" She cut herself off and laughed.  
  
Sora blinked. "What?"  
  
Kairi giggled again.  
  
Sora got the message and blushed furiously. "I DID NOT!!"  
  
"OH YOU SOOO HAD THE BIGGEST CRUSH ON ME!!" Kairi laughed herself silly. Riku didn't say a word but looked at Sora.  
  
Sora thought he should just jump in the water and drown himself. 


	4. Kiss in the Rain

Mwahaha this story is turning into my favorite! Ooo I have to change the summary.Keep reviewing, people! Don't die now!! ::evil face:: The more reviews the faster I update MWAHAHAHA  
  
* * *  
  
The rain made soft noises on the wood of the raft. Riku had fallen asleep long ago and Sora and Kairi were the only ones awake..and wet.  
  
"Okay, your turn."  
  
"All right, go."  
  
"Is it a mammal?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Is it Riku?"  
  
Sora smiled and pulled his jacket closer to the sides of his head. "No."  
  
"Aa, screw it." Kairi ended the pathetic 20 questions game and looked at Riku.  
  
"Big dope," Sora said and kicked him. Riku gave a snort and rolled over. Kairi giggled.  
  
Sora leaned against the mast and sighed. He looked at Kairi and quickly at the floor, when he found she was looking right at him. "Kairi..Why did you tell the whole world my stupid, STUPID secret?"  
  
"Because it's just a silly crush, Sora. Unless, that is, if it was more than a crush.." She looked at him mischievously and grinned.  
  
"No..You're right. It was just a crush.." Sora pulled the jacket down to shield his eyes from Kairi's.  
  
"Hey Sora?"  
  
"What?" Sora snapped at Kairi. But he hadn't meant to appear angry, so he looked up at her and repeated it less sharply. "What?"  
  
"Kiss me again.."  
  
Sora blinked and knew he hadn't heard correctly. "WHAT?!"  
  
Riku mumbled something in his sleep and turned over on his stomach.  
  
Kairi smiled and moved closer. "Kiss me again, Sora."  
  
Sora's heart picked up speed with each inch she moved closer. His voice seemed to be broken. A small, pathetic 'ih' came from his throat but Kairi made no effort to stop moving. In fact, her eyes were closed and couldn't see his face. There was no place to move back. He had set himself against the mast..she had cornered him!  
  
One inch to go..  
  
His head was clogged up..he couldn't think of anything except 'SOMEBODY! STOP HER!'  
  
Sora could feel her breath on his face..  
  
Heat was pouring from his face..If she put a piece of paper on his cheeks it would go up in flames for sure..  
  
She stopped and looked him right in the eye, smiling. "You're lying."  
  
"Wha?" His heart was thumping so loudly, he was sure Riku would hear it and wake.  
  
"I said you're lying. You really do have the biggest crush on me."  
  
Sora wondered if she just wanted to prove this or really kiss him. "Okay, okay. You're right."  
  
But she didn't back down. She leaned forward again and closed her eyes.  
  
Sora hadn't been expecting the sudden charge forward, and sucked his lips in and bit down hard.  
  
"SORA!" Kairi opened her eyes and frowned at him. "What did you do that for??"  
  
"S..sorry..." Sora blinked and rubbed the back of his head after hitting it against the mast. "I..I didn't..."  
  
"WILL YOU JUST LET ME KISS YOU?!" Kairi yelled into the night air. Sora knew Riku must've woken up, but no, he was still sleeping soundly. He wasn't sure whether she wanted this answered or not.  
  
She looked at him and grinned. "Okay, one more time..."  
  
Sora's fingers were digging into his jacket as he pulled it tighter and tighter across his head. It was originally meant to keep the rain out but now it was like some sort of protection from Kairi too, which in that case, it failed.  
  
Kairi closed her eyes and came closer, faster than the first try. Sora knew she would really get mad if he kept biting on his lips, so he let them free and clenched his teeth.  
  
Kairi let her mouth attach to Sora's and he wasn't sure whether to keep his eyes open or close them. What would happen if he closed them? Well, looking at Kairi this close made him dizzy, so he let his eyelids drop.  
  
Wow, this isn't a big deal.  
  
Sora felt her lips part a little bit and press a little harder. His eyes popped open and he blinked once or twice.  
  
Kairi finally, FINALLY let go and sat back, smiling at Sora, who sat frozen against the mast. Never, never again would he kiss ANYONE...  
  
The two sat and thought for a second, Sora looking directly down at the ground, eyes wide, face red, and Kairi looking right at him. He knew if thoughts could be displayed above people's faces, Kairi's would read, 'He looks incredibly stupid' and Sora's, 'I look incredibly stupid.'  
  
Sora tried to talk but his voice was left on the island. He cleared his throat and shifted his position to what he hoped looked like a bored-type look. "...Ki.Kairi?"  
  
"Mmm? What?"  
  
He was about to say, 'Let's never do that again,' but he changed thoughts at the speed of light. "Thanks for not telling why rain is so depressing to Riku..."  
  
"I don't think it's depressing anymore." She grinned. "Thanks for cooperating."  
  
Sora smiled for what seemed the first time in months. "Noooooo problem." 


	5. A 'Whole New World'

Ahh who needs an introduction, but just a few notes: I HAVE BEEN WORKING ON THIS STORY NON-STOP I swear. As soon as I end a chapter, I start right back up again. Then I just upload. Isn't it fun to have more chapters to read? Okay now this is my favorite story YAY I just want to stay online ALL DAY  
  
Keep reviewing, people!!!  
  
Okay I should probably put up a disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, but I sure wish I did, because then Neverland would be a lot more then JUST A SHIP AND A CLOCK!!! I WAIT FOREVER TO GET THERE AND THIS IS ALL I GET?? Ahem..you get the point.  
  
* * *  
  
"Do you feel that?"  
  
"Hmm?" Kairi looked up lazily and looked at Sora. Riku turned. "What, Sora?"  
  
"I said, 'did you feel that?'"  
  
"I know what you said, what do you MEAN?" Kairi sat up after seeing Sora's eyes. He was frowning slightly and kept looking at the water.  
  
"I me-wait..listen.." Sora dropped to his knees and put both hands on the raft, listening and feeling. There was movement.  
  
"Sora!" Kairi looked at him seriously. "Is this a joke?"  
  
"Yeah don't tell us that freaky 'power' you have is acting up." Riku resumed his position against the mast and looked out into sea again.  
  
"No you guys, I actually hear something.." His voice got softer. "Listen.."  
  
All of them froze and listened.  
  
Kairi blinked. "It sounds like...rushing water-"  
  
"SHH!" Riku's eyes widened and dropped down next to Sora, who was watching the water. "The water's movement is quicker..."  
  
"You don't think.." Kairi ran to the other end and looked down. "A..waterfall?"  
  
"This might be it, guys!" Riku grinned and looked up. "It think this is the edge of our world!"  
  
Kairi gasped. "NO!"  
  
Riku ran to put up the sail. Sora looked towards the horizon. An odd sort of blackness was creeping upward. He looked straight up.  
  
A star twinkled. It was there in broad daylight. And another, and another...  
  
Sora smiled. "We're here." He whispered. Suddenly everything hit him. And he couldn't stop talking.  
  
"YOU GUYS!"-They both looked at him-"This is it! We can start whole new lives or travel or, wait, are we prepared for this?! I mean all we have is a rope and other food and junk and OH MY GOD GUYS WHAT IF IT'S JUST SPACE??" Sora turned into an excited fanatic into a panicked fanatic. "WE HAVE NO WAY TO BREATH OUT THERE! AND WE'LL JUST BE FALLING AND FALLING AND THERE WILL BE NO END AND-"  
  
"SORA!!" They both shouted to shut him up.  
  
Sora blinked and decided to never have more then 3 sentences in a row. But there was no time to keep track of that now. "BUT-"  
  
Kairi hopped down from helping Riku with the mast and grabbed his shoulders. "SORA! WE'RE. GOING. TO. BE. FINE!" She suddenly looked angry. "We're going to be the best pioneers ever and experience everything out there...and..and we'll worry our parents half to death and...and...never come home again..." Her bottom lip quivered and she squinted. "And..."  
  
Suddenly she pulled Sora close to her and sobbed. Tears poured down her face and she seemed to be holding on to Sora for dear life. "And"-she sobbed-" and we'll never, EVER lose each other."  
  
Sora was afraid to touch her in fear she might break in two, she was crying so hard. He looked at Riku pathetically and met his eyes. They were hard to determine but he just stood staring, mouth parted slightly, showing he was as shocked as Sora.  
  
Kairi hugged him tighter and leaned in, sobbing less and less. Sora's face grew very hot and, for some reason, he felt more embarrassed than he was during the kiss. If it had been just Kairi, then he would be okay, but Riku was looking straight at them and somehow it became a very awkward spot.  
  
When he couldn't bear it anymore, he put both hands on Kairi's shoulders and lifted her off of him. Her eyes were swollen and her face was tearstained. He smiled at her. "You're right. We'll be okay."  
  
"And we'll never lose each other, right?"  
  
Stop looking, Riku. Go away. Just jump in the water. Go..somewhere. Leave us alone.  
  
"R..Right..." Sora stood there, in probably the worse situation he will ever find. His hands (now sweaty) were holding Kairi upright to make sure she wouldn't fall into his arms again, his face now a deep shade of scarlet, Riku looking at them, probably trying not to burst out laughing, and the end of the world was near.  
  
Literally.  
  
Riku cleared his throat, smiling mischievously. "Sorry to ruin the moment, but we're really close to being thrown into oblivion, so I suggest getting a little ready?"  
  
Kairi nodded at him. "Okay. And Sora?"  
  
"Yeah?" Sora wished she wouldn't say anything that would hurt his reputation, but he figured it was too late for that.  
  
"You can let go now." She pointed to his hands, which still hadn't left her shoulders.  
  
"GOT IT." Sora snapped back into reality and let go as fast as he could.  
  
* * *  
  
Sora's eyes fluttered. As soon as his body figured he was awake, it sent the pain.  
  
He moaned. His left wrist was throbbing with sharp pain and he tried to move it. Not a good idea. The pain was so excruciating he sucked in a whole lot of air and whimpered a little. His body felt paralyzed. He opened his eyes.  
  
All Sora could see was the night sky above. He blinked. He tried to sit up but his wrist gave another sharp jab and his head was throbbing. He shifted his legs so his knees were pointed up and sat straight up, trying not to move his left wrist.  
  
Sora was so dizzy he would like nothing better than to slump right back down. Purple spots were blinding him and he closed his eyes. When he opened them again, he felt sick. Being on solid ground was no joy right after 4 days on a raft.  
  
Solid ground?  
  
Sora blinked and rubbed both his eyes with his right hand, mouth open in awe. "We made it!" He whispered and smiled.  
  
He was in some sort of cement ally way. (Note: This is not Traverse Town!!) The walls, about 10 feet apart, were tinted blue by the night. Sora dizzily stood up and leaned against the wall to recover before exploring. His wrist hurt more than ever and he figured he broke it. Riku and Kairi were nowhere to be seen and he knew he had to go find them. His head was still throbbing and he slid down the wall, fed up with pain.  
  
"Hey, are you alright?"  
  
Sora looked up into the face of a red-haired girl, who bent down next to him. Her dark eyes searched his for an answer. He hurt too much to say anything. She held out her hand to help him up and he took it, still surprised.  
  
"Are you gonna be okay?" She smiled at him and put her hands on her hips. "Whatsa matter? You look like you've never seen a girl before!" She swung her ponytail and laughed.  
  
Sora blinked and realized he hadn't said a thing. "Uh..."  
  
"So you DO talk!" The red head smiled and held out her hand again. She smelled like strawberries. "My name's Anna."  
  
"...Sora." He shook her hand. She looked him over and put her hands on her hips again. She wore shining lip gloss and a tank top. A kaki-colored purse swung from her shoulder to her hips and her earrings were two round loops. "You need some help, Sora." She winked and flashed him the peace sign. "Luckily, I know just the person! Follow me!"  
  
Sora nodded and pushed himself to walk. Anna was cheerful and made Sora laugh a few times, and he trusted her with his tale. She listened silently.  
  
"Hey! We're here!" Anna pointed to a 2-story brick building with blinds on a gray door. She walked right through and knocked on an interior door. "Yo! Magi! It's Anna!"  
  
A voice trailed through the door but got louder as it got closer. "Do you have an appointment?"  
  
Anna laughed as the door swung open, revealing a smiling, middle age-woman. "C'mon in," she smiled a huge twinkling smile and waved them both in. She had dark, short hair, glasses, and she was wearing a long white lab coat, which signified she was a nurse or doctor or something.  
  
Anna put her hands on Sora's shoulders from behind and pushed him forward a bit. "Hey Magi, I gotta favor to ask. This guy was found in the ally and he's beaten badly. Can you help him out?"  
  
Magi looked up at Sora. "This is the third one! What happened all of a sudden?"  
  
Sora gasped. "There are others? Where?!"  
  
"Friends of yours?"  
  
"Did they tell you their names??!" Sora was on the point of desperation.  
  
"One of them is Candy or something...Kitty? Carmen?"  
  
"KAIRI???"  
  
"YES! That's it. She's asleep now, but I'll tell you when she wakes up. Now, what's the problem?"  
  
Anna put her hands on her hips and looked serious. "He could barely stand up and he was holding his head. He also is holding his wrist all weird."  
  
Sora made an opinion about Anna right then. If she knew the answer, she'd answer it, and not care if you knew better.  
  
Magi motioned them into a room full of equipment. "I can tell you one thing. It seems like these three fell from a long distance. Did ya jump off a building or something?"  
  
"Well...we..." Sora tried to explain it without sounding stupid. But he didn't have to.  
  
"They came from an island in space and they rafted out here, but then the raft fell off the end of the earth and here they are."  
  
Sora sighed. There was going to have to be a lot of explaining done... 


	6. Return

*~*~* I know, it's been taking FOREVER to update, but that's because I hit a dead end and, heck, can you blame me when I don't have a cliffhanger ending like I should? Anyway, I still have loads of ideas...WHICH ONE SHOULD I PUT SORA THROUGH FIRST MWAHAHAHA  
  
Ahem...somebody asked about the 'little mermaid girl' and don't worry, I didn't get rid of her completely as you are about to find out!  
  
Drat, I just gave the whole chapter away didn't I?  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Sora, Kairi, and Anna sat in the town's central that same day. The downtown was a series of little shops all around a brick sidewalk with benches and one fountain that stood right in the middle of them all.  
  
Not one of the three had said a word for the past five minutes. Kairi was bored, Sora was enjoying the silence and Anna was about to jump up and kill someone if it didn't stop.  
  
Anna was the type of girl that if something didn't happen, she would make it happen. Now, nobody knew this about her except maybe Magi, but when her family failed to yell or scream she became a very violent girl inside, and she started training secretly to attack anyone who tried to take advantage of her. Of course though, no one ever did, so what was she going to do?  
  
Anna was actually a very nice person, but when she got angry or says that she wants to kill someone, be very cautious of her because who knows? So as you can probably see, her life so far has been a big question of fate. What happened in the past was that, and what will happen in the future is just that. But until then, you just kind of have to wait for a turn to come.  
  
And then there is Kairi and Sora.  
  
One is the daughter of a mayor, and probably so bored with her life she chose to hang out with the first people who talked to her, which was a very long time ago, and just whom happened to be very close seven/eight-year-old boys. So what if she wasn't like Selphie? Heck, who'd want to swing a jump rope around?  
  
The other is a teen who is possibly going to die of embarrassment sooner or later, as we have all predicted. But other than that, he is a person who has fallen into the trap of self-consciousness that we all know. Up until he met Kairi, Sora was best friends with Riku and that was that; they didn't care if they appeared weird or different to the other island occupants.  
  
Then Kairi came along and whammo. Sora falls for her.  
  
Literally. He tripped over a rock reaching out to shake her hand.  
  
So here they all were, sitting in complete silence. Anna finally jumped up and practically screamed.  
  
"Do you want to do something else?!"  
  
Sora shook himself from his trance. He looked up at Anna. "What?"  
  
Anna groaned and walked away. Kairi jumped up and followed her, and they started talking about something.  
  
Sora sighed and stared forward again. "So we're here. Here at a new world," he told himself and yawned. "Now what?"  
  
He pulled himself up and ran his finger over his wrist bandage. It was white and hard, but it looked just like a regular bandage that you wrap around your arm if you got a cut. He stuck his hands in his pockets and walked along the brick marketplace.  
  
Women and children walked together, and men bustled by carrying briefcases and mumbling to themselves. Sora liked the sounds of murmuring conversation and little kids running around with ice cream smeared on their faces, shrieking with laughter. If you've ever been around a group of shops, this is what it looked like.  
  
Sora walked on towards the fountain at the end of the street. It looked over the small bay, covered with docks and ships of all sorts. The masts were sky high, and house-boats were elegant.  
  
"And to think," Sora smiled. "We came here on a raft." He sat down on the bench next to the fountain and watched the water fall down, the 'splash' of the water as it hit the pond inside. And hanging over the edge was...  
  
Sora almost fell off the bench and yelped as if he had been struck by lightning suddenly. His thoughts swarmed around his head like a pack of bees and he stood up, slowly backing away from the small hand that was hanging over the wall of the fountain.  
  
Okay, Sora, get your head together. Get Anna or Kairi. Get help. Get that body out of the fountain...  
  
Sora's heartbeat picked up as he took step by step forward towards the fountain. No one was around him and he peeked inside, expecting blood or a mangled body.  
  
Sora dropped to his knees and his mouth dropped open. "Ah..."  
  
Kairi ran over to him, seeing him frozen by the side of the fountain. "Sora? What..." She gasped as she saw 'what.'  
  
"Sora...? What is...who? Who is that?"  
  
Sora reached both hands over the wall and lifted a small, child-sized mermaid out. 


	7. Three Girls

Yeek, you saw that coming, didn't you? Welp, here's the seventh chapter...  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own 'Search for Delicious' (Natalie Babbit) or 'Emily the Strange.'  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"What is it about small children? How come they know more about Kingdom Hearts than we?"  
  
"They were probably reborn people. You know, die-and-come-back type."  
  
"Do they ever come back as anything else? Why can't they be chairs or something? I bet you anything this chair knows everything about the world," Evani whacked the chair she was sitting in.  
  
Carson rolled his eyes. "Evani..."  
  
"I'm serious! I mean, this chair has possibly seated FBI agents, spies, and maybe even royals...I should write a book! 'The Secret of Chairs: Our Greatest Secret Keepers.'"  
  
"Evani..."  
  
"Damn, that sounds stupid. How about, 'You Better Stop Talking Around Chairs...'"  
  
"EVANI!!"  
  
Evani blinked and her black hair fell down her back as she looked up. "What?"  
  
"We need to focus here."  
  
"Oh. Right." Evani stole one last shifty look at her chair. Carson rolled his eyes again.  
  
"So what were we saying? Small children?"  
  
"And the Keyblade Master." Carson took out his wallet and pulled out three pictures.  
  
"Keybl...I thought we already had one of those masters...?"  
  
"We did. Remember? He got sucked into..."  
  
"The darkness. I know now. So what is this deal about kids?"  
  
"It seems these girls"—he showed the three pictures to Evani—"were reborn somehow into this century."  
  
"So they come from the future?"  
  
"Possibly. We don't know."  
  
Evani picked up the first picture. It was a small girl with brown hair and red turtleneck, with red leggings and a deep blue overall dress. She flipped the picture over, and in small cursive writing at the bottom:  
  
"Ty."  
  
"That one is Ty, yes."  
  
"What's the deal with her?"  
  
"She is a spirit from a soul garden."  
  
"SOUL GARDEN?!" Evani shrieked, and everyone else in the small shop became silent to stare at her.  
  
Evani lowered her head and Carson sighed deeply. "What's a soul garden?"  
  
Carson stared at the ceiling as the normal buzz of conversation flooded back to the room. "Soul garden...well, I don't know if everyone has one, but legend says that if people with some sort of ESP have images of gardens inside themselves."  
  
"So if they close their eyes, they can see spirits and gardens and things?"  
  
"Yep."  
  
"Jeez. Kills to be psychic."  
  
"Tell me about it."  
  
"So...this Ty girl...she escaped?"  
  
"No, she was let out of that person's mind because she knew everything about Kingdom Hearts."  
  
"I have no idea how someone could do that, but okay I see why that would be a problem."  
  
"What problem?"  
  
"Well, she knows too much. Doesn't that mean you lock her up?"  
  
"Lock her up? What are you talking about? Ty could have been a huge piece of the puzzle!!"  
  
"'Could have been.'"  
  
"Could have been. We couldn't get any info out of her, she kept telling everyone 'Isn't it obvious?' or 'Why are you asking me?'"  
  
"Typical six-or-seven-year-old. But one question: how was she 'reborn?'"  
  
"You know how everyone has like a past life?"  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"And you know the person with the soul garden?"  
  
"Oh I get it...Ty was living in that person's past life, and then was reborn with the person. Oh wait...how old was the person?"  
  
"Twelve."  
  
"So how can Ty live only for seven years?"  
  
"Ty lived as long as that person was in touch with his/her true soul. Then as years went by, I guess they just kind of slipped..."  
  
"Ah." Evani placed Ty's picture down and picked up a blond-haired little girl in a sea-green dress. "Ardis. Who was she?"  
  
"Ardis was from the sea. We don't have too much info on her. All we know is she lives in the sea that surrounds Destiny Islands."  
  
"Destiny...Ah yes! Where the Keyblade Master's from!"  
  
"Yes. We don't know if that is a coincidence or Ardis was meant to be there. She was reborn from a book character into Kingdom Hearts." Carson pulled out a paperback book from his book bag. "'Search For Delicious.' You've read it, right?"  
  
"Yeah. About the boy who asks for the definition of 'delicious' and causes a war. Tuh, idiots." Evani laughed and flipped through the book. "Why was she picked?"  
  
"She wasn't picked, Evani, she died and came back, remember?"  
  
"How did she—?"  
  
"We don't know. Look at the last girl."  
  
"'Emily.'" Evani read and turned the photo around to look at the face of the small girl with black eyes and hair. Her skin was a pale, pale white and she was crossing her arms in front of a looming mansion.  
  
Carson sighed. "Emily."  
  
"What is the matter with her? She looks like she needs a shrink..."  
  
"She lives in Halloween Town and wont let anybody into her mind."  
  
"So how do we know that she knows everything?"  
  
"Because of what she represents."  
  
"What's that?" Evani leaned closer as Carson's voice became softer.  
  
"Emily represents the Heartless."  
  
Evani gasped and covered her mouth. "No way...does that mean...?"  
  
"Yes, Emily could be imprisoning our Keyblade Master."  
  
"She could be our greatest enemy..."  
  
"Right." Carson spread all three of the photos out and gazed at the three small girls. They stared back at him, all wearing faces of seriousness. "We better get started."  
  
Evani nodded and picked up her coat as she stood up. "Right." 


End file.
